Rotting on the Vine
by Anvanimaserke
Summary: Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A SetoJou vampire story with a horribly original twist. UPDATING AGAIN! CHAPTER 6 ADDED
1. Jou's Notes

AN: Okay so you can understand the terms used in the story, please read "Jounouchi's Notes". As you will soon find out Jou has been doing research on vampires, and this is a little piece of his note book, just to help you understand whats going on. Jou talks about the different clans of vampires, as well as a little about his research trail!... okay I'll shut up now, enjoy!

Jounouchi's Notes

**Brujah**

crazy vampire rebel (With or without cause)

super strong

super fast

short temper

Individuals, freedom fighters

**Gangrel**

Animal like

Loners

Summon animals to help fight

Can change into cooli animal form… thing

Feral

**Tremere**

Use special magicy powers

Not very strong or fast

Other vampires think are creepy

Feed more to use magic

Like mages I guess XD

**Ventrue**

Business like

Professional

Snarky leader

Like Kaiba, only dead

**Malkavian**

Just plain crazy

Totally whacked

Out of these minds (okay I think I'll get the point…)

Powers to make other crazy like them

Can me murderous to catatonic (man I had to look up that word…)

**Toreador**

Artsy

Caring

Humane

REALLY shouldn't be vampires

Prissy

**OTHER STUFF**

Lookin for vampire hang out, found a lead (Yami knows EVERYTHING)

Lead hit dead end, Kaiba corp. not vampire place

Kaiba corp. DOES ship in vampire blood for testing (I knew Kaiba was weird in the head) (YAY for Honda's hacking skillzz XD )

Found club place to check out, going tonight to see…

OMFG vampires! MUST sneak in before Friday (half price beer day shudder )


	2. Chapter 1 The Empire of the Vampire

Title: Rotting on the Vine

Chapter Title: The Empire of the Vampire

Rating: PG13 (rating changes through out fic)

(Story)Summary: A Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A Seto/Jou vampire story with a horribly original twist.

(Chapter) Warnings: Yaoi, blood

(Story) pairings: Seto/Jou

(Chapter) Theme song: Bloodsucker 2000

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh or the characters; I just like to play with them. All The vampire clans and info was taken from the game 'Vampire The Masquerade" which I also don't own XP Well, I own the game, not the idea… yeah XD

Jounouchi stood before The Asylum, his deep honey kissed brown eyes drinking in the carmine neon light. He sighed, the air tasting of cold bitter smoke and concrete, with the faintest touch of rot. It didn't surprise him. The bouncer at the door eyed his suspiciously, seemingly trying to decide what to do about him. Jou could tell just by looking at him, his narrow black eyes and long matted dreads, that he was a Gangrel. It wasn't like Jou to research but on this particular subject, he knew a great deal. It wasn't just something to read about, something to eat up his time… But it was something he hoped could change him. That goal had brought him to the door of The Asylum, a wild little club hidden away in the corners of Domino where all the night crawlers went. From the sweet and artistic Toreador to the wild and unruly Brujah, they were all here. Jou took a deep breath, feeling constricted under the only pair of jeans he could find that were tight enough to convince the bouncer he really didn't need circulation.

"Careful in there kid…" The bouncer said with a bluntly hungry smile. Jou rolled his eyes, knowing this guy took him for some stupid street kid. It wasn't to far from the truth, but it wasn't the precise truth either.

Inside the air was so dense with smoke it really was hard to breath, thought not that many people inside were breathing. A mass of pale bodies wrapped in different shades of leather twisted on the dance floor, the smoke sliced open to show them grinding by blades of red strobe light. Music bled from the speakers, the ground shaking under the stilettos of the dancers with every heavy bass beat.

But Jou wasn't interested in any of that. After month of research, of learning about these creatures and what they could do… he was only interested in them. He couldn't deny that the power appealed to him, the beauty and the flawlessness of them. But he liked to believe it wasn't because he was shallow like other people. Oh no, he had much better reason to want to trade his world for this one.

There was a vampire sitting near the end of the long bar counter, tracing his short sharp black nails around his glass. His hair was snow white as his skin, falling in long sharp spikes down his back. His eyes were scarlet like the blood in his cup. He raised the glass to his lips and drank, and Jou watched the marble of his throat. Every movement he made seemed to scream 'Predator'.

Jou could feel his heart pound in his chest, and from the way that one scarlet eye slanted his way he was sure that snowy vampire could feel it too. Jou stepped forward, clearing his throat although it was completely unnecessary. The vampire turned to face Jou completely and Jou couldn't stop the surprise from showing on his face. The vampire's other eye was a sweet honey-brown, so much softer then the scarlet one he had glanced room across the room. His outfit was even split down his middle, half of it black jean for the scarlet-eyed side, and the other done in soft white. One eye blinked a little before the other, one hand's nails painted in soft blue while the other was black.

"You're Malkavian, huh?" Jou blurted before he thought any better.

"Yes, we are… what are you doing here?" a soft almost kind voice asked.

"Uh… I want…" Jou had to close his eyes for a moment, almost not believing this was happening. He stubbornly ignored the fear knotting his stomach. No. He wouldn't back out now. Not after months of trying to find this place, not when just a little power could solve all his problems.

Jou knew he wasn't smart. Or at least, that's how he classified himself. He never expected to do much in school, never expected to be able to leave the horrible closet of a room he hid in every night, burning incense to kill the bitter smell of whisky. It was so cliché he wanted to puke. Or die. Either was good.

"You want what?" a much crueler voice asked with a grin so twisted it looked more like a clever way to bare fangs.

"I wanna be like you," he stated, opening his eyes and giving a determined look.

"Do you now?" The cruel voice questioned, "No you don't!" the kind voice urged in a hurry. "Ryou, that's rude, don't tell the boy what he does and doesn't want…" The other voice retorted. Jou blinked a few times, trying not to laugh. Sure they were unnerving but it was sort of funny to see someone talking to themselves like that, or maybe the fear just made him nervous enough to want to laugh at something that wasn't funny.

"I do. An' I don't wanna hear all this 'it's a worse life then ya think' crap cuz I know it aint gunna be worse then what I got now so…. Come on, it's not like it's that much trouble for ya…" he said, hoping the tenseness he felt didn't creep into his voice. His hands slid into his snug pockets, his golden bangs falling over his eyes. He shook his head and watched the strange vampire with a stubborn look on his face.

"Hey, you don't have to convince me kid," the darker voice hissed. "My name's Bakura, and I'd be happy to help you… You'll have to excuse my brother Ryou; he's too much of a bleeding heart for this sort of business…"

"Yeah, yeah, how charitable of ya…. Don't haffta pretend here; I'm offering ya a free drink…" Jou said flatly, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm more doin' ya a favor then anything…"

Bakura tilted his head back and laughed like something was amusing. His lips parted and the sickly yellow bar light slid over his fangs like amber sparks.

"You sound like a Brujah…"

"Is that what I'll turn into then?" Jou couldn't help when his curiosity spiked up. It was one of the only things he was unclear on, for he knew about the different clans and what distinguished them, but he couldn't find any information on what determined the clan of a new vampire.

"Is that what you'd like to be?" Bakura asked, folding his fingers together and resting his chin on them. His head tilted to the side as another sly smile crossed his face.

"…Sure. Sounds good."

"I can do that…." Bakura pulled out a small clear glass vile full of claret red liquid. Jou swallowed hard, trying to rid his throat of that horrible dryness.

"I will give you this, after you let me have a drink…."

"Not your blood?" Jou raised an eyebrow, nervous because he didn't understand.

"No, my blood won't give you what you want… Besides, then you'd be my child, and I really don't want to have to deal with that…. Take this, after I drink…" Bakura transferred the little vile to his other hand, or rather, the hand with the blue nail polish. His other hand drew forward, reaching for Jou expectantly. "Come here…" he beckoned with a rather disturbing smile. Jou stood still for just a moment, refusing to give in to his hesitation. Stiffly he stepped forward, grabbing Bakura's hand. The snowy vampire continued to grin as he pulled Jou close, until pressing down on his shoulder firmly, planting Jou in his lap. His sleek pale fingers turned Jou's head to the side, barring his neck.

"You're heart is beating so fast…" Jou bit back a shudder as the cold words ghosted his neck, as the icy fingers drew away the stray strands of his tarnished-gold hair. Bakura leaned forward, his lips a breath away from Jou's neck.

"Why…" Ryou sounded so horribly sad, his words quiet and shaking with sorrow. "What could you have to deal with… that could possibly make you chose this…?"

"I got no direction to go in. I'm not smart enough to do good in school, my friends are all movin' past me, I'm a disappointment who's only ever got his drunk dad to go home to. I'm sick of it all. I jus' want to forget about it all!" He didn't know why he explained it; he just did. Maybe in a way he felt sorry for the voice that could speak to him so sadly.

"You can forget everything…" Bakura purred against Jou's neck, one hand sliding into his hair, curling into a fist to stop his head from moving.

"N-not… everything. I mean… I'll still be able to see my friends and stuff sometimes, jus' at night… I dunno… I jus' wanna be able to… do stuff for myself." It was instinct to try and pull away from the constricting grip but Jou did his best not to, listening to himself speak. He couldn't stop the shocked gasp or the crawling shudder that went through him as Bakura's cold tongue darted out and slid up his neck.

"Hn, you like that…?" Bakura crooned wickedly, his grip tightening painfully in Jou's hair.

"Jus' shut up and do it already." Jou bit back a wince and forced his voice even.

"Eagar…?" Bakura lifted his head just a little to whisper against Jou's ear, pressing the tip of his tongue along the shell of it. Jou bit down hard on his own lip, stifling a displeasured whimper. Heat burned his face, his ear and throat where Bakura continue to lick. "S-stop it already!"

From the way the fangs slid in so slowly, Jou almost thought it was Ryou's mercy rather then Bakura's bloodlust that forced the bite. He gasped so sharply he thought his lungs might pop, the sharp stabbing pain pulsing through his entire body. He could feel himself shaking, the pain almost flavored like a horrible fever. He winced as the hand in his hair gave a vicious pull, forcing his head to the side more. The muscles in his neck burned. A thick sleepiness was beginning to leak into his head, much darker and deeper then any sleep had ever felt before. The pain faded slightly to the feeling of a cold wet tongue lapping hungrily at the wound, and then lips, smooth icy lips, encircling the fang marks and sucking in a way that might have been called gently.

Jou wanted to ask him (them?) to stop, but couldn't. His lungs felt like they were full of gravel. The softest gasp left his lips as Bakura (or more likely Ryou) pulled back. Jou felt the room spin harshly as his head was tilted back, his lips pulled apart by one probing cold finger. He nearly chocked when he felt the thick coppery blood slid over his tongue, but forced his throat to swallow, letting it drip down. A small shy hunger stirred inside him as he weakly lifted his hand, tilting the vile so more blood trickled into his mouth. He found the strength to swallow fast, to gulp when the weakness began to ebb away. When the vile was empty Bakura let it slide from his fingers, and the glass shattered over the floor, glittering like silver pixie dust. Jou groaned, the bright-light spark hurting his head.

He hadn't quite the strength to pull away as Bakura grabbed his chin, pulling him forward roughly to lick the smallest little trickle of blood, tracing from his chin to the corner of his mouth. Bakura sneered as the taste, pushing Jou roughly to the ground. The powder-fine glass shards bit harshly into his palms as he hit the ground.

But he wished that pain would return as something worse stung under his skin, a pain so horrible he couldn't even call it pain. He gripped his head hard, body curling up in some childish defense. He could hardly believe his eyes when fistfuls of golden hair came out in his hands.

"What a pity… you were so pretty too…" Bakura said, a cruel bite in his voice. Jou looked up, vision blurry with pain, and saw a crimson tear slide from a soft brown eye. "I suggest you get home soon child. Your transformation will be… quite difficult." More ruby tears trickled down from that single eye as Bakura's smile twisted in cruelty. Jou stood up, stumbling a little as the pain made his legs want to buckle. The cold night air stung his skin as he broke through the door. He felt like his body was breaking, his skin peeling off. He could hardly see, stumbling through the darkness guided only by the smeared neon lights. He wasn't going home, not like this. Shit, his father might even think he was drunk.

There was a voice that wasn't his own shouting on the edge of his consciousness, a blur that might have been frantic hazel eyes. Jou didn't know, he couldn't see anymore, could feel anything past a deep consuming urge to close his eyes and pass out. He could do nothing but surrender.

Chapter one! Anyone want to see more? Please review! One of my fav parts is hearing what people think! (puppy dog eyes)


	3. Chapter 2 The Sickening Joke

Title: Rotting on the Vine

Chapter Title: The Sickening Joke

Rating: PG13 (rating changes through out fic)

(Story)Summary: A Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A Seto/Jou vampire story with a horribly original twist.

(Chapter) Warnings: Gore, violence, death

(Story) pairings: Seto/Jou

(Chapter) Theme song: Rotting on the Vine

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh or the characters; I just like to play with them. All The vampire clans and info was taken from the game 'Vampire The Masquerade" which I also don't own XP Well, I own the game, not the idea… yeah XD

* * *

Jou sat up slowly, groaning as sickness coiled in his stomach. The softness under him confused him, and when his eyes focused enough he could see that he was lying on black sheets crumpled messily over a double bed. The light in the room was dull, the thick heavy gray drapes drawn shut, only a ribbon of sun cutting through across the room. Jou's eyes focused on a white sheet of paper pinned under a blue penguin paperweight on the nightstand next to him. He found that he didn't even need to pick it up to be able to read it clearly.

_Jounouchi;_

_DUDE! What the hell is wrong with you? You scared the crap out of me man! I found you half passed out on the street! If you wanna get THAT drunk at least take a cab. Jeez. And I think you need to go to the doctor pretty bad; you look like shit, no offense or anything. If you want I'll take you when I get back from school. I'll tell the teacher you weren't feeling so hot so she won't go nosing around calling your house._

_And hey look, if you dad is upsetting you that much that you need to go out and get smashed… just stay at my house for a few nights, or however long you need. I really don't mind. Just relax and take care of yourself all right? Take my advice and shower; the street you passed out on was nasty. You were all covered in mud or something._

_Anyway, I'll see ya around three, after school._

_Tristan _

Jou shook his head, feeling rather odd as the skin on his head and neck crawled with cold. On impulse he reached for the note, but suddenly forgot what he was doing. He froze, not believing what he was seeing. His skin was uneven mix of gray and earth brown, thin and sick looking, stretched over his arm. His fingers were thin; the nails jet black and claw like. His stomach twisted painfully as he moved his fingers, watched the claw-like hand before him move as he told it too. He gasped and the air stung, like he wasn't meant to breathe. He struggled to stand, darting for the bathroom that connected to Tristan's room. The white glare of the tile bit into his eyes and he shut them tight, holding his hands (claws) over his face. A moment later he pulled them away, fear twisting his stomach into knots. His face didn't feel the same.

He tore off his shirt, tripping out of his jeans and boxers. Steam hissed from the faucets of the tub as he twisted the handle. Hot water beat against the peeling plastic butterfly matt that had never quite given up in sticking to the bottom of the tub. Jou stepped inside; emitting a shocked yelp when searing hot water hit his bare scalp. His eyes closed stubbornly, refusing to look at himself.

He groped around the slick wet tile of the shower until his fingers found a cloth and a bar of soap. He rubbed the soup all over himself until his skin was numb and he was almost sick from the smell of cheap 'mountain rain.' He almost cried he rubbed the cloth over his skin too hard, desperate to scrub off whatever filth was contaminating him. Eventually he couldn't deny the futility of it any longer, sinking to the bottom of the tub with a tired, defeated sigh. He sat with his eyes closed for a long terrified moment, before slowly reaching forward and twisting off the faucets. He could feel every lick of soft wet steam so distinctly it chilled him. Once out of the tub Jou gripped the sink tightly; eyes still pressed shut. He knew the mirror was right before him; he could feel the coolness of it seep into the air before his face. He lifted his head slowly, unable to keep his eyes closed one second longer.

Jounouchi's could only stare at himself for a total of three second before he opened his mouth and screamed. His hands first went to his head, bald and smooth, covered with that same gray, almost decayed, skin. It was too smooth to be decayed, but to gray and cold to be anything else. His fingers trailed to his ears, long and pointed, sticking out from the sides of his head. His eyes were bright glaring amber yellow, cut through the center with sharp black slits. His mouth, hanging open in shock, showed his fangs. His lips hardly fit over them, his jaw even slightly changed to accommodate them. Both rows of teeth were full of large razor sharp fangs, like wolf's teeth fitted into his mouth. Jou blinked at himself a few times, reaching out with his claw-like hands to touch his reflection.

The front door creaked as Tristan walked into the hallway, kicking off his shoes with two loud 'thuds.' Jou looked over his shoulder, eyes wide with panic and fear. _What the hell did Bakura do to me? _he thought franticly, his arms wrapping around his chest. He could feel his ears fold down; his black lips slip over his wolf-like teeth.

"Jou? Yo, Jou are you awake?" he heard the other call, heard the bedroom door creak open. Jou backed up, his back hitting the steam-slick wall. He looked down at himself, down at the death-grey skin wrapping his body, the deep red sores that were dotted here and there, the way his legs and arms had become a little longer, making his appearance almost fiendish. The bathroom door opened and he stumbled back into the shower out of sheer panic, nearly tripping on the curtain.

"Jou? Are you in there?" Tristan poked his head through the door, his hazel eyes inquisitive.

"Y-Yeah…" Jou couldn't stop his voice from shaking, speaking every bit of fear he felt. "Jus' takin' a shower…"

"You okay man? You sound freaked…"

"Y-yeah, jus' tired…"

"Okay… Hey I brought you some Chinese food…"

"Uhm… You go. I think I'm jus' gunna go to bed…"

"Come on man. You've been sleeping all day… Please? Besides, I wanna talk with you about…." Tristan trailed off, his voice gentle with concern. "You can go to bed right after we eat, promise. I'm sure you must still feel really hung over…"

"T-Tristan, when you found me, was I…?" Jou couldn't even contemplate how to put together the rest of that question._Was I a grotesque monster?_

"You were passed out and you looked pretty pale, like you hadn't slept or eaten or anything… You looked pretty bad, Jou. Your hair was even coming out a little. Come on, there must be something making you sick. Come out and eat with me…"

Oh, he couldn't deny he was hungry, but he sure as hell wasn't moving.

"Really Tristan, I don't feel good. Jus' go…"

"But Jou-"

"Please!"

There was a long painful silence until Jou heard Tristan give a deep sigh.

"Well okay man. If that's what you want… Call if you need anything…" The click of the bathroom door as it closed echoed through Jou's ears.

Jou sat at the bottom of the tub for a long time, shaking as the water dried off his skin. He finally stood, avoiding the mirror, resisting the urge to break it. He knew he had to get to The Asylum, find Bakura, and make him fix whatever the hell he had done. He climbed awkwardly into his dirty torn pants, the long black claws on his feet shredding the left leg as he slid his leg down. Jou cursed under his breath, much more careful with the other leg, but still managed to shred them half way down. He bent down stiffly, reaching for his shirt when-

"Hey Jou. I just thought I'd bring you a plate incase-" Tristan had come through the door with a plate of dinner. He froze, eyes widening in fear. Jou could hardy stand the look, never having seen one quite like it before. One that clearly said, 'You're a monster.' Tristan opened his mouth and before Jou could stop him (what really could he do?) he screamed. Glass shattered on the floor, sweet and sour sauce and rice splattering over the floor as Tristan dropped his plate. He fell clear on his back, too afraid to land gracefully.

"Tristan, wait-" But Tristan didn't seem to hear as he turned over, his legs moving in a frantic run before he was even on his feet. He darted down the hall, his face white with terror.

"No, Tristan its okay!" Jou called out, running after him in a panic. He caught up to Tristan without even trying. He caught his wrist, clapping a hand over his mouth to stop the screaming. He opened his mouth, about to speak, when a strong sweet smell hit his nose, nearly knocking him over. Jou's eyes fell to the red sauce smeared over Tristan's hand from where he fell. His nostrils flared and a demanding, vicious hunger consumed his mind. Without a second thought, he pulled Tristan's wrist to his mouth, running his long sleek tongue along the sweet red. And of course, it wasn't sauce at all; it was blood from where the shattered glass had bit into his palm.

Tristan screamed and whimpered into the hand that was still clasped over his mouth, his eyes pressed shut as if refusing reality. When the little cut ran dry of blood, Jou opened his mouth in a sleepy-hunger daze and sank his teeth into Tristan's wrist. Blood gushed into his mouth, running down the sides of his face, and pouring sweet and hot down his throat. It was all Jou could do not to shudder, not to rip Tristan apart to get at more. Tristan was squirming and screaming to get away, but seemed unable to break Jou's grip._'Please calm down…' _Jou thought sleepily, his tongue licking greedily at the gaping wound. Tristan's attempts got weaker, his cries becoming quiet until he seemed content to stay in Jou's grip and let him drink.

Jou gasped as he pulled back, feeling the hot blood run through him like a jolt of sweet electricity. He let go of Tristan's mouth and wrist, stepping back when he realized he had trapped the other against a wall.

"Tristan I-"

But Tristan simply fell to the floor; his eyes open wide and frozen in terror.

"T-Tristan?" Jou dropped to his knees and grabbed Tristan's shoulder, shaking him gently. "Tristan!" But the boy's eyes remained open and unseeing, his mouth gaping in a silent scream. Jou fell backwards, unable to tear his eyes away. Bloody tears dripped down his face, hanging with Tristan's blood on his chin.

The sun had long gone down when Jou finally stopped crying. The shadows stretched and grew, pushing back the light until they soaked together into another cool night. Jou jumped out the back window under a blanket of darkness, landing on all fours in Tristan's backyard.He watched it for a few long moments until searing yellow headlights cut through the night down the street. Jou disappeared into the darkness, unable to see the vitric black limo pull up to the curb beside Tristan's house.

* * *

Thank you very much for the reviews! I'm glad you people liked the first chapter, and I hope not to many people are scared away by this chapter (sheepish smile) Please review! reading feedback is one of my favorite parts! 


	4. Chapter 3 Isolation

Title: Rotting on the Vine

Chapter Title: Isolated

Rating: PG (rating changes through out fic)

(Story)Summary: A Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A Seto/Jou vampire story with a horribly original twist.

(Chapter) Warnings: mentions of blood

(Story) pairings: Seto/Jou

(Chapter) Theme song: Isolated

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh or the characters; I just like to play with them. All The vampire clans and info was taken from the game 'Vampire The Masquerade" which I also don't own XP Well, I own the game, not the idea… yeah XD

lj-cut text="Eternally there's nothing left for me to be"

Jounouchi had learned quickly not to walk the open streets, even the shadowy ones. The accusing scream of sirens and the sharp bite of bullets told him not all mortals would scream and run away. He stuck to the back ally ways soaked in mercy dirty darkness, slinking through the crevasses of the city as soundlessly as he could. Soon he could see the same bouncer as the night before, standing glaring through his dreads with his thick arms crossed stubbornly across his chest. Jou slinked up to him, finding it easier to move if he hunched down a little. The Gangrel bouncer wrinkled his nose as he saw Jou approach.

"What the hell are you doing here rat sucker?" He said, looking at Jou as if he were a piece of dirt.

"What the hell did you call me?" Jou raised an eyebrow, sneering at the taller, more muscle-bound vampire; his black lips curling back to bare his wolf-like teeth.

"You heard me." Jou shook his head, his ears folding down in annoyance.

"I don't have time for this shit, let me in."

"Yeah right, don't you know anything? We don't let dirty rat suckers in here…"

"What? Look, this aint funny, I need to get in there and look for the guy who did this to me!" Jou's voice was slowly getting louder, his claws curling into fists.

"I told you, we don't let your kind in here, so the dirty thing that sired you isn't going to be here," The bouncer said coolly, giving Jou a cruel smile that reminded him of Bakura. He hissed suddenly, barring his jagged animalistic teeth. The bouncer narrowed his black eyes.

"He wasn't like me! He was a crazy Malkavian with one red eye and one brown one. We made a deal and he was supposed to make me a vampire!"

"Oh…" The Bouncer gave another cruel smile, his teeth barred. "But you are a vampire; you're just of a very… rare clan. You're a Nosferatu. And seeing as Master Bakura kept his word, I see no reason to bend the rules and let you in… you might scare away all the customers with that ugly mug of yours."

Jou growled, not as unnerved as he should have been by all the strange sounds rumbling from him.

"Look man you not listening to me! This isn't what I wanted! I need him to fix it!" Jou took a step forward, his claws taut and ready.

"Excuse me…" a silky voice lulled from behind as the bouncer raised his hand, blue circles of electricity spiraling about his fingers. Jou glanced backwards for a brief moment, but when he saw who it was he couldn't help but turn from the Bouncer.

"Yami!" he exclaimed, eyes widening drastically.

"Kage, leave this poor neonate alone…" Yami said to the bouncer, his scarlet eyes glinting brightly in the dim ally that lead to the club door.

"Then keep him out, you know we don't let his type in. For a Brujah you sure are a bleeding heart." The Bouncer said. Yami didn't even dignify him with an answer, tapping Jou lightly on the shoulder and beckoning f or him to fallow back into the darkness of the ally. Jou glanced back, looking longingly at the door to the club, for a moment picturing Bakura and Ryou perched at the bar inside. With a small growl he turned away, hurrying down the alleyway to catch up with Yami.

"I don't know what you were thinking neonate but I would suggest against trying to get into that place… even if you get in, no one inside will be as friendly to you as I…"

"Yami, what the hell is going on?" Yami turned, his intense scarlet eyes peering through his white-gold bangs. A calculating look slid over his face as he slowly turned to face Jou, his long black-purple coat rippling around him.

"…Jounouchi?" He finally said; confusion and dread staining his tone. Jou's stomach twisted at the sound of it, like he had done something horribly wrong.

"Yeah… it's me." He said, giving a humorless nervous laugh, his hand rubbing the back of his head out of habit. He drew it down quickly when he felt the cool smooth skin rather then his hair.

"Oh Ra… what happened to you?" Yami took a step closer, the sorrow dripping into his eyes like a stain. Jou looked down, eyes settling on his claw-like feet.

"Eh… some Malkavian vampire named Bakura –er, sometimes it was Ryou- tricked me… he was supposed to make me a vampire but-"

"But you are a vampire," Yami shook his head, and when he opened his mouth to sigh. It was the first time Jou had noticed those sleek pointed fangs. "Do you know anything about The Nosferatu Jou?" Yami's expression only grew darker as Jou shook his head. "Than I suppose it is my unfortunate duty to explain… but not here, it is to dangerous… fallow me."

Yami seemed to know the best ways through the city's dirty back alleys, weaving through the darkness like a snake through grass. Eventually they came to a stop at a dead end, so draped in shadow that Jou could hardly make out Yami's faintly glowing red eyes.

"You've gotten yourself into a great deal of trouble Jou…" he said gravely.

"W-what do you mean?" Jou's stomach twisted and he wondered if somehow Yami knew what he had done to Tristan. Guilt stung his head and he looked down again, trying to keep the feeling from showing on his face.

"I mean the blood you took from Bakura has indeed turned you into a vampire, but one of a very rare and horrible clan… You are a Nosferatu Jounouchi, a vampire that has been deformed by their curse. Back in ancient times, the Nosferatu used to dwell in sewers and underground labyrinths, hiding from all other forms of life." Yami's voice was tight and carefully measured, his eyes peering sharply as Jou, scarlet cutting into amber.

"What!? Why!? Why did he make me into one of those!?" Panic edged Jou's voice, seeping into his eyes to mask the knowing guilt.

"…. The Nosferatu can't exist in both worlds like other vampires can. They can't walk the city streets at night; they can't mask what they are like the rest of us can-"

"Yeah no kidding, man if I knew you were a vampire I would have just asked you too-"

"And I would have said no!" Yami said, anger suddenly flaring in his voice. "It's a curse Jounouchi, no matter what your reason was it wasn't worth it!"

Jou felt a spike of resentment in his stomach; what did Yami know? He didn't have to worry about grades or getting a good job, or going home every night to flying glass bottles. He didn't know anything. But, in a way, he was right. It wasn't worth being turned into this kind of monster.

"I don't know if you understand this Jou, but you're not going to be able to see your friends again. You'll only scare them-"

"But what about you? W-what about other vampires?" Jou interrupted, his claws tangling together, fidgeting nervously. This wasn't what he wanted!

"We don't speak to Nosferatu Jou, it's the common belief that they are… dirty, below us, unable to mask what beasts they are. The Nosferatu even feed most commonly on rats, unable to easily and inconspicuously feed from humans. So they are considered to be less then we."

"B-but, you helped me! Why cant you-"

"I helped a young creature who didn't know the way of things. Now you do. Believe me Jou, as much as I would like to help you… I will not risk turning other vampires against myself in order to continue to guide you. This is your own fault, for trusting creatures such as us…" Volumes of guilt were spoken in the last four words, Yami's eyes sinking down to stare blankly at the filthy concrete. He shook his head slowly, looking back up at the starless, pollution-tinted sky. "If it were just myself I was risking, then perhaps… but its not. Yugi is still a mortal, and much more fragile then I… I can not risk the wrath of my clan. Brujah are horrible negotiators." Yami's tone was faintly apologetic, his shoulders sinking a little as he spoke. "I am sorry, but you will have to find you own way…"

"But…" Jou's head was spinning, soaking in all the horrible knowledge, wishing he could just stop listening. "C-can ya at least tell me… a-are there other vampires like me around…?" When Yami met Jou's eyes next he knew what the answer would be before he opened his mouth.

"I've been around for a long time my friend, and I haven't seen a Nosferatu before you in four centuries." The words weighed down him like lead weights. He felt the dead weight of dread pull him, threaten to pull him to his knees right there over the broken glass bottles that lined the alleyway. Jou hung his head, his arms wrapping around his chest tightly.

"… w-what should I do?" he said after a long empty wordless void, filled only with the distant cry of sirens.

Yami's foot tapped deliberately on the manhole cover below him, metal clicking against metal. "I think you should hide," he said with an apologetic look, "No one will bother you if you stay down there."

"B-but…" his eyes traveled down, imagining the world he would confine himself too. "… its not what I wanted!" he shouted, "I-I just, I just-"

"I know Jou, but you'll have to deal with it now." He said, not kindly, but not cruelly either.

"W-what if I find Bakura, could he-"

"I don't think he'll be able to do anything. As I said, I think you best bet is to hide… you 'll cause trouble if mortals see you, and you might be attacked if you keep pestering other vampires." Yami's tone grew sterner, his eyes cool and determined, like he would repeat himself all night if he had to. "I know I may come off unkind Jou, but things will only get worse if you don't heed my warning. I don't think you yet comprehend the poison you consumed."

Jou couldn't help but look down again, reach out and peel away the manhole cover as if it were a piece or plastic wrap. The metal chipped concrete as he drooped the cover, chips of black cement scattering over his bare, somewhat scabbed toes. His gaze dipped into the cool sinking darkness, his nose wrinkling at the smell of stagnant rot and mold.

"I-I…" he couldn't stop imagining crawling through the wait deep filth, snatching a mud matted rat and sinking his teeth in… sucking it dry. A disgusted shudder rippled up his spine. "No, no. I don't wanna go down there…" Jou could feel his pointed ears fold down, feel his tongue nearly pierced as he clenched his jaw.

Yami gave a tired sigh, turning his attention to the mouth of the ally. "Remember my advice neonate… for this-" he gestured to the open manhole, to the funnel of darkness and mold, "-may be your only sanctuary…" Jou could hear the rats down in the depths of the sewers, tried to ignore the hunger that stirred in his stomach.

"O-okay I'll remember… but I aint going down there…."

"I'm sure you will eventually, when you realize there's nothing for you up here anymore…" Yami turned to leave, sweeping past Jou and into the mouth of the alleyway. He paused, looking back with a warning glint to his eyes.

"Oh and Jounouchi, I do hate to say this but… when I mentioned you need to stay away from mortals, that includes Yugi. I'm sure you wouldn't want to scare him, or endanger him with your presence, there's just too much that could go wrong…" as with that he left, his shoes clacking loudly against the cracked pavement. Jou leaned against the grimy alley wall, trying to force back the horrible nausea and guilt that threatened to devour him. He sunk down, not even feeling the bite of the broken glass through his tough skin.

"I'm not goin' down there, I wont…" he told himself as he listened to the rats splash in the sewers.


	5. Chapter 4 Life Clinging Backwards

Title: Rotting on the Vine

Chapter Title: Life Clinging Backwards

Rating: PG13 (rating changes through out fic)

(Story)Summary: A Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A Seto/Jou vampire story with a horribly original twist.

(Chapter) Warnings: het touching and kissing, blood, death

(Story) pairings: Seto/Jou

(Chapter) Theme song: Deception

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh or the characters; I just like to play with them. All The vampire clans and info was taken from the game 'Vampire The Masquerade" which I also don't own XP Well, I own the game, not the idea… yeah XD

Jounouchi knew it was going to storm. Somehow he could feel it in the air so vividly; it was like the storm itself was whispering into his ears. They were twitching almost constantly as he slipped through the back alleys, avoiding the occasional homeless person that stumbled drunkenly by. He didn't know where he was going, but he knew he was avoiding the cluster of teenagers that had stolen his little back corner to smoke weed and inject god knows what. Their blood smelled rotten and made his stomach hurt, but he was so hungry it hardly mattered. He needed to stay away from anything alive, save for the rats that were rather scarce… on the surface anyway. He hadn't yet gathered enough courage or swallowed enough pride to slip into the sewers yet.

Jou found it hard to hold onto his own little corner of the night. Teenagers, other vampires, or the homeless often forced him out. He managed to hold onto that particular corner under a collapsed wall, hallowed out enough to sit in comfortably, for three nights. He had known it was taken before he arrived that night, the bitter smell of smoke and beer viciously teasing him as he neared.

He hoped the coming storm would delay the sunrise as he darted through the alleyways, looking for another little hideaway. It seemed every empty building, dark overpass, and sheltered bus stop was full tonight. Panic pricked sharply at Jou's mind, his muscles burning as he forced himself to move faster. There had to be somewhere.

He was approaching a shallow pool of oddly clean white streetlight, moving to press himself around the opposite alley wall and avoid it. It highlighted a set of dingy stone steps leading to a boarded metal door. He didn't expect to see anything else as he got closer, but on the steps sat a shaking little girl, the light sliding down her and giving her a soft angelic glow. She looked to be about sixteen, but her gently curled white-blonde pigtails made her look younger, as did the fluffy brown teddy she clutched to her chest. She wore a sheer white cotton shirt that hugged her form, her gently curving chest. Her green and black plaid skirt fell around her thighs, clean white socks reaching up just shirt of her knees. Thick heavy black shoes hung on her feet, a strap wrapped firmly around the top of each socked foot. She held her face in her hands, crying softly. Jou shoved back the urge to help her, bitterness stinging him unpleasantly when he realized any attempt he made would just make her night even worse.

Jou couldn't help but watch her for a while, an odd sort of longing bubbling up inside him. He just wanted to talk to her, feel her eyes on him and see the absence of sheer horror. He just wanted to help her and feel like he had done something useful. He watched as he clutched her bare, rocking back and forth slightly, fat tears streaming from her face like rain. He wished he could warn her about the coming storm.

"Hey babe," Jou jumped, shock stinging his nerves as he crouched and pressed himself flat against the wall. He had been so intent on watching this girl, he hadn't even heard footsteps. But now that he listened, his ears picked up a second pair of lungs breathing, and the not so far off hum of traffic. The man who had entered the alley was dressed in dirty black leather and tarnished silver jewelry; chains and brass knuckles. A red bandana bound back his unruly looking spiky blond hair, and the eyes that peered over his black sunglasses were a dirty, mossy blue.

"What's the matter sweet thing?" he questioned, pulling his sunglasses down his nose so he could see her clearly. Jou had the most brotherly urge to kick his sleazy ass. Under that urge lay the much darker violent urge to hurt him out of jealously, for if someone like him could be looked at by someone like her without the faintest trace of disgust, there truly was no justice in the world. She looked up at him with her sweet, horribly innocent blue eyes, her soft pink lips formed into a plush pout.

"I-It's my boyfriend! He kicked me out because he thought I was cheating on him! But I wasn't and now I don't have anywhere to go!" She said, voice soft and high, almost child-like.

"Really?" Jou's eyes narrowed as he watched the clearly predatory way he approached her, the injustice of it all making him angry. "Poor doll, that sounds awful… stuck out here with nowhere to go…" His shadow fell over her as he leered down, his lips curving into a sickening smile. Jou saw no fangs, just a man who thought with the wrong part of his body.

She sniffled, pulling a small Kleenex from her tiny blue silk purse, and dabbing her eyes. Mascara bled down her cheeks.

"I know! He was such a bastard! I can't believe I l-l-loved him!" she sobbed, her voice cracking as she hung her head. Her hands covered her face as she began to cry, a few drops splattering onto the pavement. Jou felt helpless, watching this poor fragile thing about to get in even worse trouble, and unable to do anything to help.

"Aw that's rough baby… you can come stay with me if you want, I'll take good care of you…" He said, voice like coffee sweetener, sugary but fake. But she just looked up at him with those naive blue eyes, almost child's eyes, and a light pink color touched her cheeks.

"Y-you'd do that for me? Really?" She stood up, her small plaid skirt swinging around her thighs, her teddy dangling helplessly from the hand at her side.

"Of course, what kinda man would I be if I didn't help a lady in need, huh?" he stepped close to her, looking down through his greasy blond bangs, smiling like a cat with a mouse under it's paw. "You know… I wouldn't treat you like that jerk did…" he said softly, tilting his head down to her.

'You don't even know her name…' Jou found himself hissing in his mind, his hand curled into fists, his claws biting into his palms. His ears were pointed down, his teeth barred as if he were about to strike. But he stayed, hunched down on his knees in the darkness, unable to do a thing. What if he did jump out? They'd probably run off together and the sleazy jerk would have claimed to protect her, and he'd get under that little skirt just that much faster.

"Y-You wouldn't?" she said softly, looking up at the man with wide doe-like eyes. "I-I… I don't know what to say…"

"Shh…" he placed a finger on her lip, leaning in so close his lips were almost touching hers as she spoke. "I'll make you forget all about him okay…?" he used that coffee sweetener voice again, before pressing his lips firmly against hers. Jou's ears rung with the sounds of his gravelly grunting, her soft shy little gasps. He starred for a few moments as the nameless blond licked and sucked hungrily at her lips, his hands playing up her smooth flat stomach, pushing up her shirt. He looked away sharply, closing his eyes. He felt envy and disgust woven together flawlessly. He wished he could do something, stop that son of a bitch from taking advantage of the poor girl. But at the same time… he was jealous. Not that he couldn't stalk the back alleys looking for emotionally damaged women, but that he would never be able to touch someone that way, never be able to even kiss.

A heavy depression settled in the pit of his stomach and he let himself sink down against the wall, more meaning to his life slowly unraveling. His jealously grew as he listened to them moan, watched as his dirty hands slipped under her shirt and his fingers traced her breasts.

"You know…" he whispered in a rough, bluntly lusty tone, "the best way to get over someone is to get under someone…"

And that was when Jounouchi saw the fangs in her smile. He couldn't take his eyes away as her teeth slid into his neck like a knife into soft butter, as he licked at him with her perfect pink tongue like a kitten licks up milk. Jou swayed forward slightly; unaware of what he was doing, drawn by the thick too-sweet scent of blood. Flecks of blood dotted her round cheeks as she pulled away some time later, letting his dead cold body sink to the ground.

"What do you want, dirty rat sucker?" she suddenly hissed, eyes cutting through the alley at Jou. He hadn't realized he had stepped into the light, his mouth watering at the scent of blood.

"I-I…" he didn't know what to say, shock and hunger, disgust and jealously all clashing over him at once.

"Sorry fledgling but there's not yummy rats here for you," she said in a cruel tone, a smile in her blood-kissed lips. "So why don't you crawl back to the filthy sewers you came from?"

Jou was stunned, unsure of whether to shout or ask for help, to run or punch her across the face.

"Stop standing there looking like a moron, I told you to get lost! I don't care what you saw me do with him, that was for food. I know I look easy but you certainly won't be getting any …" She said with another cruel smile, running a finger over her bottom lip. She slid it slowly into her mouth, watching Jou's eyes as he gently sucked off the blood. Jou swallowed hard, taking a small step backwards.

"Aw, poor nasty rat sucker…" she hissed, before stepping sharply forward and slapping him harshly across the face. "Ew, and now I have to wash my hands… I told you to get lost!"

Jou touched his claws to his face as pain hummed through him. He blinked up at her, saw his reflection in her wide eyes, his horrible fangs pointed ears, his death-grey dirty skin. He couldn't see it anymore, couldn't stand the disgust on her face. His feet moved franticly under him, carrying him away from the bloodstained pool of light, down a blur of alleys. His cheek stung from where he was slapped, his stomach a painful tangle of panic and hurt, and a stubborn jealously he could never rid himself of. He wanted to get away, to run where he would never have to feel anything like it again. Bloody tears streamed down his cheeks, his yellow eyes flashing in wild panic as he ran.

Rain began to pour down, beat against Jou as he ran. Thunder growled threateningly as lightning screamed across the sky. The alleyway gave way to a seemingly abandoned street, and in the center silver fog slithered in little curls from under a manhole cover. Jou suffered from a moment of hesitation, a moment of stubborn dignity and hope. The moment, and the hope and dignity with it, fell away and shattered into a million pieces. Jou darted out to the middle of the street, claws praying desperately at the round filthy disk of metal.

He looked up in sheer terror as a set of screaming white headlights charged at him. He gasped, a silent scream on his lips as he froze solid. The car swerved but hit his shoulder, and pain cried through his body. He fell to his side, dread growing in his stomach as he heard voices screaming, smelled tires leaving rubber scars across the road. Dizziness swallowed his mind; heaviness filling up his limbs like his blood became gravel. He knew it might not hurt so much, if he had bothered to eat anything in the past few weeks.

He pried his eyes open, blood blurring his vision. He saw slanted pavement and an approaching pair of sleek black shoes, around them a black trench coat dusting the ground. Dread coiled in his stomach and he waited for the scream he knew would come.

"Oh, now what do we have here…?"


	6. Chapter 5 Come Crawling

Title: Rotting on the Vine

Chapter Title: Come Crawling

Rating: PG13 (rating changes through out fic)

(Story)Summary: A Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A Seto/Jou vampire story with a horribly original twist.

(Chapter) Warnings: Blood

(Story) pairings: Seto/Jou

(Chapter) Theme song: Master of Puppets

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh or the characters; I just like to play with them. All The vampire clans and info was taken from the game 'Vampire The Masquerade" which I also don't own XP Well, I own the game, not the idea… yeah XD

Jounouchi starred to the rainy blur above him, framed against the black night sky. If the figure wasn't crouching down, rolling him onto his back, Jou might have sworn it was Seto Kaiba. Inquisitive icy blue eyes slid up and down him, his gaze falling over him colder then the rain.

"Sir, sir what did we-?" The driver's voice broke into a scream that made Jou's ears fold down, a small wince barring his teeth. Kaiba seemed pleased with that little show of life, a sick fascination in his eyes. Jou blinked up as the blurriness drained away, his insides twisting together as Kaiba gave a pleased smile.

"Shut up," he said shortly, casting a quick cutting glare over his shoulder at the hysterical driver. "Get the door, we're taking it home." Jou felt to dizzy, to hungry to even move as Kaiba's arms slid under him, lifting him from the pavement. He puzzled for a moment as to why his back was so wet and realized with a sickening jolt that it must have been his own blood. His head throbbed painfully, hung back over Kaiba's arms, while the rain stung his open blank eyes.

"But sir-" the driver sounded absolutely hysterical, "-it's a monster! I-I know you find these thing interesting but he doesn't even look like a-"

"But he is a vampire; a rare breed I thought was extinct. Studying him should prove most useful…" Jou was stunned as Kaiba looked down at him. He was so used to seeing those algid eyes filled with contempt and disgust, he almost didn't recognize them when they weren't. Instead they were colored with the darkest fascination, like Jou was something Kaiba might like to dissect.

"But sir, don't you think it's dangerous too-?"

"I think it's dangerous for you to keep disagreeing with me," Kaiba looked over his shoulder, sharpening his eyes into dangerous glare, his lips curved into a devious smirk. The driver shut his mouth and nodded, stumbling toward the car door and holding it open. Rain littered the black limo and Jou thought it looked like it was covered in beads of glass. The soft dewy warmth inside the limo crawled under his skin, the lush leather seats softer then anything he had touched in the past few weeks. He could feel his blood seeping into the seats from what felt like everywhere, feel Kaiba's eyes on him as he bled. The limo slid smoothly into motion and began cutting through the storm. Jou idly watched the streaks of rain slither down the tinted windows, his head filling with the streaming blurs of neon outside. He felt dizzy, heavy-headed and ill. It was hard to stay awake, but the fear of dissection convinced him to try.

There was an odd mechanical hum as the window between the driver and the backseats slid shut. Jou tried to yelp as he was suddenly pushed onto his back, but there was no air in his lungs to produce sound. He starred blankly at the soft looking ceiling of the limo, trying to ignore the helpless feeling seeping into his mind. No, even after all this; he refused to feel helpless to Seto Kaiba.

"Hm…. Stupid creature, you look starved to death…" It was probably only because no one else was around that Kaiba smiled at his own pun. Jou felt the urge to sneer and explain that it wasn't so easy, but he suddenly realized he owed Kaiba no explanation. Besides that, he still couldn't speak.

Jou couldn't help but watch Kaiba's face, watch the lack of disgust. In disbelief he found himself searching for the faintest hints of fear, but found none. It confused him, and if he had been in a clearer state of mind he might have been angry at himself for watching Kaiba for so long. He might have been angry at himself for not wanting to look away. He couldn't help the growing desperation, the need to be seen without hearing those awful screams…

Jounouchi suddenly felt horribly weak, and pressed his eyes tightly shut. He didn't need that sort of relief from Kaiba (but the worst part was he did).

A soft pained growl bubbled past his dry sticky lips as he felt fingers probing his ribs, fallowing the ridges that were far to apparent down his sides.

"What's wrong with you, you're starving yourself…" Kaiba muttered, mostly speaking to himself. That sick fascination was back on his face, and for the moment Jou dared look up he saw Kaiba looking right back as if he wanted to pry open his head and pick it apart piece by piece. He looked away in a hurry, his gaze falling to the floor of the limo. He was still on his back, remaining the way he was pushed, devoid of the strength to move himself.

Kaiba watched the strange creature bleeding on his seats, a calculating look on his face. Jou could feel his probing eyes but didn't want to look, afraid of the expression he might see. He remembered vaguely from his research that Kaiba corp. did import vampire blood, and suddenly he was more scared then he had been all night. What if Kaiba wanted to take him home and do some strange experiments on him? He couldn't help but look up in a panic, but his eyes never made it to Seto's.

What he did see was the sleeve rolled up Seto's arm, the faint blue vein weaving smoothly under the skin, and the sharp pen knife pressed to the pale skin. Kaiba was holding his arm just above Jou's mouth, smiling with that persistent twisted interest in his eyes. Jou's eyes widened, his mind freezing up, his mouth watering. Something stubborn in him that resembled pride told him to turn away, to close his eyes and growl and hiss until Kaiba got the idea to back off.

But he didn't. He watched Seto like he was holding the key to all his happiness, holding it before him while a faint cruelty slipped into his smile.

"Open your mouth," he said quietly, pressing the knife a little more persistently to his skin, "If you die before I get you home, you wont be of much use to me…"

Jou did as he was told, a hazy embarrassment writhing in his stomach. There was something telling him he would never ever do what Kaiba said, but he was too hungry, to drunk on the smell of that tiny drop of blood to care. It smelled so much sweeter then the sticky bitter rat blood that lined the inside of his mouth.

Drops of blood fell from the little wound into Jou's mouth, speckling his filth-black tongue with bright scarlet red. His eyes nearly rolled back, saving him from the sight of Kaiba's grin. Jou felt his wounds began to heal, felt the persistent ache wrapping around his ribs flicker and fade away. Jou tried to sit up, bringing his mouth closer to the wound, his eyes drifting half shut. He chocked slightly as a harsh pressure pushed him back, flattening his back to the seats. He didn't want to focus past the sweet hot drops of red dripping so slowly down his throat, but eventually he began to feel a hard metal coldness pressed to his forehead. His eyes opened and he was starring up the barrel of a sleek silver hand gun.

"You'll take what I give you," Kaiba said shortly.

Any slowly emerging urges to grab Kaiba's wrist and sink his teeth in withered instantly. Jou went limp against the seats, trying to catch the drops that hit his lips with his tongue. The gun's firm press to his head let up slightly, although Kaiba's finger remained on the trigger. Eventually he pulled his hand away and Jou was left without the warm comfort he so badly craved, barred to the guilt and shame that swarmed his mind. He wanted to totally deny that had happened, press it to the darkest corners of his mind where he would never have to think of it again. He did not enjoy it; he didn't wish it would happen again he was not licking the corners of him mouth to remember the taste.

The car pulled to a sudden stop and it startled Jou so much he rolled right off the seat onto the ground. Kaiba covered his mouth to hide his snicker. The driver came to open the door, his face white with fear, his eyes darting in panic to steal quick glances at Jou. By now Kaiba's sleeve was rolled down, the knife hidden away in his pocket. The gravel on the path to the house shifted under Jou's feet and he felt each piece under his skin, held each slow warm lick of humid wind. His eyes darted about, amber digging through the darkness with ease. The grounds were large, dotted with trees and occasionally a fountain or two. The house loomed ahead with its giant white walls, its immaculate windows glimmering like steel in the darkness. Kaiba pushed open the large

doors, made from smooth lackluster black wood.

"You're invited…" he said in a soft voice, eyes sliding to Jou's without the faintest hesitation. Jou looked down; his claw's twitching slightly at his sides. So much in him was telling him this wasn't right… but really, where else could he go? The sewers? That wasn't much better, and he was still marginally more scared of doing that then trusting Kaiba.

Wait, trusting Kaiba? Was that what he was doing? Was he really that desperate…?

He stepped inside without considering an answer. Everything about the house was smooth and clean, dark and almost unlived in. The curtains were all drawn shut, blocking out the splotchy silver light of the moon as it tripped through the thinning clouds. Even when the lights were on they had the gentle glow of candles, and the walls were all painted in dark rich shades. The place looked like a giant show piece.

"Follow me…" Kaiba glanced back, his eyes bright icy-blue against the dimness. Jou did as he was told, watching the tails of Kaiba's coat, not wanting to meet his gaze.

Kaiba pushed open a faintly shimmering metal door, and steel hinges groaned into the otherwise unbroken silence. Inside the walls, floor and ceiling all looked to be the of same vitric metal. There seemed to be no light, although Jou could clearly see the dark purple futon on the corner, the little nightstand and the cluster of black candles upon it. Across the room from that was a larger table with an assortment of generic looking boxes, and a chair pushed against it. Otherwise the room was empty. On closer inspection Jou noticed that one of the dully shimmering walls was in fact a mirror, and if he focused his eyes the right way, he could see clear through it to the room on the other side.

He stepped inside without question, his gaze dropped to the floor. He didn't have anything that would be better then this.

"You'll no be aloud out of here unless I give you special permission. You'll receive three small sized blood packs a day… of you get violent, I'll dissect you. Understand?" He regarded Jou with a very pleased smile, his eyes slightly narrowed. Jou ignored the sick pulsing in his stomach and nodded slowly, trying not to let his ears fold down.

"Good…" He trailed off as Jou walked deeper into the room, running his claws over the wooden table. He flinched slightly when leaving deep raw scars in the wood without meaning to. He pulled his hand back and tried to pick the wood from under his nails, scowling slightly when he heard Kaiba snicker. ".. .Do you have a name…?" Kaiba questioned casually, tilting his head to the side, looking at Jou as if he were a piece of horribly abstract art. Jou looked back over his shoulder, meeting Kaiba's eyes but looking away.

"Can't speak hm? Interesting…" The brunette mused to himself seeming a little disbelieving. "Fine… then for the purpose of getting your attention I'll call you… Quasimodo."

At that Jou's ears did flatten, his eyes narrowing slightly as he looked over his shoulder at Kaiba. It seemed too little more then amuse the brunette as he gave another less then nice smile, before turning and shutting the door behind him. Jou have a deep sigh as he heard the heavy echoing click of a lock. He gave the room one more sweep with his eyes, getting the impression Kaiba had been waiting a long time for a test subject. He dragged himself over to the futon, dropping into his knees and splaying himself across it. It took a good fifteen minutes of tossing and turning before he realized he was too riled up to sleep. Too much had happened, to much was different, and he could still taste blood in his mouth. He shook his head hard, sitting up and looking around again as if perhaps something new and interesting might pop up. He stood and paced about the room, before stopping before the table. His fingers ghosted the boxes, inside puzzles, a book or two, nothing to spectacular.

It was at that point he could no longer ignore the feeling of eyes on his back. Not turning around he pulled out the rickety wooden chair, dragging it to the middle of the room. He sat facing the mirror, and starred straight into Kaiba's eyes.

It may have been the first time he had ever seen shock in those arctic blue eyes.


	7. Chapter 6 Playing Games

Title: Rotting on the Vine

Chapter Title: Playing Games

Rating: PG13 (rating changes through out fic)

(Story)Summary: A Classic story of a boy seduced by the power and beauty of the world of vampires, who seeks to become part of it. But since when do things go as you plan them? A Seto/Jou vampire story with a horribly original twist.

(Chapter) Warnings: Blood, swearing

(Story) pairings: Seto/Jou

(Chapter) Theme song: The Game

Jou really hadn't expected to be all too entertained in that little room. He had picked apart the stack of boxes, and the most interesting thing he found was a puzzle of a chibi blue eyes white dragon. He had just barely dumped the pieces over the table before his lost his will to try it. The pieces were still there, scattered over the scared wood, nearly three weeks later.

The experiments were nothing that offered too much entertainment either. Jou was almost embarrassed, thinking back on how terrified he had been. Sometimes little tiny holes would open up in the wall, and Jou could feel the air being pulled from the room. He had panicked at first, until he found it didn't bother him at all. The whole time this was happening, Kaiba was usually in the little observation room behind the mirror, sipping black coffee and taking notes.

Occasionally the sleek metal of the ceiling would slide back, giving a faint metallic hiss. He never got to see what was underneath, because suddenly there would be a bright eerie blue light pouring from the ceiling. It hurt too much to try to see where the light was coming from.

Jou's excellent ears could pick up so much now, that eventually he learned those lights would create mass amounts of ultra-violet light, and the amount of radiation he had undergone should have killed him three times over.

'You know for a smart guy your pretty stupid' Jou found himself thinking with something that resembled a grin. 'Can't kill what's already dead…' Kaiba had caught his smirk, his eyes narrowing slightly. The brunette was back in the observation room like he usually was in the middle of the night, when Jou was awake. His hands were coiled around a large black mug of coffee, his notebook left forgotten on the table. After all, Jou wasn't giving him much to take notes on.

Jounouchi found the most entertaining thing to do was to plant himself in that chair in the middle of the room, and stare at Kaiba as he tried to observe. At first it unnerved him, but then it just seemed to annoy him. Jou snickered to himself as Kaiba's eyes narrowed, and he placed his coffee cup rather roughly on the table. His arms folded across his chest as he stepped up to the glass. Jou could read the words off his lips, 'You do this just to annoy me don't you?'

Just then the hinges creaked as the thick metallic door slid open. Jou barely glanced backwards from his seat, expecting to see the same skittish servant who would stick her hand in the door to drop one of his three daily bags of blood. However this time it was a strong looking young man, wheeling a cart piled with boxes. He glanced nervously at Jou as the opened one the flimsy cardboard boxes, and pulled out a pile of books. Jou raised an eyebrow as the servant dropped the pile of books onto his table; some were novels, some picture books, some cook books and some magazines. Jou looked back at Kaiba inquisitively, to which Kaiba only tapped his fingers impatiently over the glass.

Next from off the cart came a small TV, a game system, a rubix cube, and several more boxes of puzzles. Finally the servant placed a small pack of blood and the table and left, nearly tripping over his own feet and onto the cart on the way back out. Jou looked between the collection of things and Kaiba, his eyes traveling back and forth.

'Ah I get it, you think I'm boring huh…?' Jou thought to himself, trying to keep from smirking. He stood up, walking over to the table, running his claws lightly over the various things. From the corner of his eyes he saw Kaiba reach back for his notebook and his pen, flip open the pages and hold the pen ready to write against the page. Jou smirked to himself, picking up the pack of blood and walking away from the table with an uninterested expression. He sat back on the chair and bit into the blood pack, watching Kaiba as if he were the most interesting thing in the room. Kaiba threw his notebook back to the table with an exasperated sigh and it was all Jou could do not to burst out laughing.

Within a few moments Kaiba had left the observation room, and Jou delighted in the fact that he had been boring enough to make him leave. He was just twisting the nearly empty blood pack above his open mouth, drawing out the few last drops of blood, before the door hissed open yet again. Kaiba was in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest. His sable bangs fell smoothly over his narrowed eyes, which were glimmering softly in calculation. He wore all black, all expensive looking formfitting clothing. Strapped to his side was a silvery handgun, glittering boldly in the dim light, unhidden by any sort of coat. His notebook and pen were clenched in his left hand.

"I can tell your trying to annoy me, the question is why," Kaiba stated, looking Jou directly in the eyes.

'Old habits die hard?' Jou thought to himself, unable to stop a smile from curving his lips.

"I suppose you have nothing better to do then to bother me hm?" Kaiba tilted his head in contemplation, the dim light from the hall sliding over his eyes. Jou's smile only grew more impish, his head tilting to mimic Kaiba. To this the brunette shook his head and gave an aggravated sigh.

"You're smarter then I thought," he admitted through clenched teeth, seeming rather fed up. Jou snickered softly; finding the tips of is ears twitching with impish happiness.

"You know I could be a lot more unpleasant then I have been…" Kaiba said, threat woven in the tone of his voice. Jou's stomach clenched despite his best efforts to write it off as an empty threat. "I've been trying to study your intelligence and behavior, but since you insist in being so difficult, perhaps I should move into something else? How you cope with going hungry? How you deal with live prey? Or how quickly you can regenerate lost body parts?" Jou's ears folded down, a persistent gnawing fear settling in his stomach. On impulse, he reached blindly to the side for one of the items on the table. He grabbed a puzzle box, and held it forward to Kaiba, giving it a gentle shake. Kaiba arched an eyebrow, eyeing Jou carefully.

"… Alright," he finally, his voice carefully measured. Jou gave an awkward smile, stopping when he realized just how unnerving that must look. His ears still down, he began pushing things to the side, clearing off a space on the table. Quickly he tossed a few books in a forgotten box, using it for a seat and ungracefully pushing the actual chair before Kaiba. Before he really had time to think about what he was doing, a thousand little cardboard pieces were pouring over the table, and Kaiba was watching Jou expectantly, setting up the box so we could see what they were supposed to be making; a pair of emerald dragons under a blaring red sunset. For a moment Jou tried to remember the last time he watched the sun go down, before carefully sorting the pieces into edges and insides.

Kaiba's fingers slid under his gaze now and then, also sorting out the pieces. His notebook was resting on top of the pile of boxes at the edge of the table, left untouched for now. The silence slowly became less and less awkward to Jou, and eventually he was more worried about where to find that damn dragon's nose then anything else. He searched the slowly shrinking pile of pieces several times, scratching his head in frustration when he couldn't find it. Slowly his eyes moved up to Kaiba, who was holding the piece with the dragon's nose between his pale slender fingers.

"It took you three minutes and twenty six seconds to notice where the piece was. You're a little slow aren't you?" Jou flattened his ears, snatching the piece so quickly he speared it with one of his claws. He held his finger before his face, his eyes narrowing as his ears remained flat. The dragon's nose now had a giant hole in it.

Kaiba snickered softly, reaching forward and carefully pulling the piece free, gently fitting it into its place.

"My point stands," he said, a confidant, smug smile on his face. Jou narrowed his eyes and stuck out his tongue, careful not to hurt himself with his long cutting teeth.

Not long after the puzzle was finished, and Kaiba left. The soft lights that had been on when he was inside flickered off and the darkness rushed back to Jou's eyes. He blinked a few times, watching the observation room, but no one entered. He let out a long slow sigh, leaning against the wall and sinking down. His head rested in his hands, palms covering his eyes. His stomach felt tight and knotted with nervousness; sense when had screwing with Kaiba landed him in the best situations?

Suddenly, Jou's eyes darted up to the table, and a small smile curved his lips. He stood, his nervousness forgotten or now, and walked forward, reaching out with a sly smile on his face.

It was some time later Seto Kaiba was wondering back down the long corridors of his mansion, his impatient footsteps clapping harshly down the silent halls. He opened the door slowly, peering inside.

Jou had his back to the door, curled up with his knees to his chest, and although Kaiba couldn't divine from breathing whether or not he was asleep, he guessed from the stillness that he was. Kaiba watched him for a moment, again taking in the odd color of his skin, his claws, his long ears. Even through all his research, he hadn't yet found another creature like this one. Questions buzzed around in his mind but he shook his head, eyes roaming the darkness so search out what he came for. His notebook was on the table where he left it, and with a little aggravated sigh he picked it up and left, returning back to his home office.

He slid easily into his leather chair, the stiff fabric molding perfectly to his body. The blue light of his monitor whispered softly over his face, pooling in his eyes. Gentle humming from the computer made for a delicate white noise, soon to me joined by the rapid clicking of his fingers over the keys. Kaiba would glance back at his notebook one in a while, flip a page, narrow his eyes in thought.

He slowly turned the next page, his other hand poised above clean white keys to type. His eyes widened very slightly, before a small smirk curved his lips.

"Oh damn it…" he muttered, pushing his bangs away from his eyes and shaking his head back and forth. He read the words again, the thick spidery scrawl under the final row of his perfectly neat notes.

'Took you more then three minutes and twenty six seconds to realize your notebook was missing.'

Jou still hadn't spoken to Kaiba, mostly because if he did, he was worried the other might recognize his voice. He sighed deeply, narrowing his eyes in thought, his ears twitching up and down.

"What's the matter bright boy, you stuck?" Kaiba mocked, and Jou marveled that even when facing a creature that could easily rip his throat out, Kaiba still delighted in being a jerk. His nose wrinkled slightly when he realized he was the same way.

"Heh, if you've got nothing to do then pass your turn already," Kaiba said with a dominating smirk, taking Jou's expression to mean he was stumped. He couldn't blame him, not like Jou made any effort to communicate in any other way.

Jou looked down at the table. Today it had been cleared completely off, as both he and Kaiba had completed every puzzle he owned, and were sufficiently bored with board games.

Today they were playing Duel Monsters, and Kaiba was winning by a ghastly three thousand points. Jou glared sharply at the cards in his hand, having little more useful then a tiny dragon to toss down in defense. He did so, folding his arms on the table and laying his head on them, his ears folded down. He wondered what temporary insanity made him think he could do this. He tapped his claws impatiently on the table; the wood scarred beyond recognition by now after all the digging for puzzle pieces, tapping in waiting.

Jou took slight comfort n the fact that if he really wanted too, he could shred that damn white dragon card through its expensive plastic cover. He smirked slightly at the idea, lifting his head just enough to see the lay out of cards.

'Oh yeah, I'm fucked…' he though to himself, shaking his head and covering his face with his hands. Kaiba chuckled, rearranging several cards off the table and placing down that god damn three headed dragon. Jou looked between it, and Kaiba's victory grin, before flattening his ears. He nodded slightly, holding out his arm, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Now, now, no need to be a sore loser… You know I would have done the same if you had won…" Kaiba took a slender, sinister looking needle from his small medical pack he had brought in. Jou didn't wince as it slid into his arm, but felt a little sick as deep dirty looking purple blood began to bubble into the syringe. "This better not be making you hungry, you already ate today…" Jou shook his head and stuck out his tongue, trying to force away the queasiness in his stomach.

Moments later Kaiba was snapping the needle off the syringe and sliding a cap into it so nothing would leak out. Jou used to wonder why Kaiba found him so fascinating, but guessed it was something similar to why he found vampires interesting. The power and mystery… but Jou himself never felt like any of those words had anything to do with him. Still he'd catch himself shrinking away as the door opened, catch his ears folding down as a servant would come in and avoid looking at him.

He looked Kaiba fiercely in the eyes as this thought crossed his mind, for the millionth time searching the other's teen's face.

"What?" Kaiba only smirked, gathering his cards and stacking them into perfectly neat little stacks. "Did you want to lose again?"

Jounouchi found himself smiling, the persistent ashamed feeling flickering out for now. He held out his hand, wrapped in grey dead skin, sporting deadly animal-like black claws from thin spidery fingers. Kaiba handed him the cards easily, an arrogant smile on his face. Jou was beginning to figure out that Kaiba liked games as much as any little boy, and showed it more openly then he first thought, Jou just knew the proper signs to look for now.

"Alright, first I'll play this…"

Jou's ears folded down. 'Shit…'

Kaiba's sigh told of all the tiredness plaguing his body, told of all the energy draining out of him and the stress tangling up his mind. He had had to stay late at work, toiling away at his computer, dissecting a misbehaving program that was making all his holograms come out with the wrong proportions.

The plush leather of his chair eased the tension from his back as he slowly relaxed, breathing deliberately slow. His foot nudged the on button for his computer, and soon his home office was full of gentle white noise.

His fingers moved absently along the top of his other hand, sliding under his palm, feeling the sore ridge his penknife at had left. Yes, he certainly did have a lot of work to do for his company, and that ate up more of his thought capacity then a little meaningless game of cards.

He turned his palm up, eyes tracing the tender red line along with his fingers. It was thread-thin, and would be gone by morning. Kaiba remembered the stunned look on the vampire's face when he had won, the way he starred at the cards, searching them over and over as if expecting them to suddenly jump around and change.

Kaiba knew it unnerved him far less then it should have. His eyes fell shut as he remembered watching the creature's eyes as he slid the knife over his palm, they way they lit up and fallowed the drop of blood like they couldn't look anywhere else. He remembered the feeling of having such a creature, such a twisted, rare, powerful creature watching him with such a vivid helplessness. He hadn't expected that, hunger of course, but not helplessness. He remembered as the vampire had learned forward almost shyly, watching Kaiba's free hand and the gun strapped to his side, like it just might have been a trick.

"You won," Kaiba remembered saying, a bitter bite to his tone, "Better not let your luck go to waste…" Those amber eyes were fixed on that one first drop, even as it fell to the ground and splattered on the floor. The next moment there was a sleek black wetness tracing his wound, and Kaiba couldn't believe he was actually letting him to do it, couldn't believe he wasn't unnerved at all. It was hard to feel the least bit bothered when for that small moment the vampire's tongue was on his wound, he seemed so completely powerless, so defenseless.

But what puzzled Kaiba more so was how the vampire had pushed hand away, pulled back so violently he nearly fallen backwards. His eyes had been so wide, so bright with shock and surprise and oddly enough embarrassment. Kaiba smiled at the thought, not really knowing why, not really caring.

The sound of generic beeping finally broke through his musing, and his eyes slid open. He watched the computer screen, the only light in the room, and raised an eyebrow.

'Private File Quasimodo Opened' read the little alert window, blinking a panicked red. Kaiba sat forward sharply, fingers flying over the keys. But even after an hour of trying to trace the break in the file, he came up with nothing.

Kaiba's eyes stung, the green-blinking digital numbers on his clock beating into his head. It was eight eighteen, but Kaiba had only slept four hours in the last three days. He glared at screen, deciding to take care of it after a few hours of sleep… after a few hours of sleep and a card game with Quasimodo.


	8. Chapter 7 A Whole New World

Jou sat with his back to the cool metal wall, tapping his claws absently against the floor. His stomach was tight with hunger and anxiety, and although a pack of blood lay on the table next to him, he refused to eat.

His eyes pressed shut in attempt to black out the thoughts, but it did little good. He remembered just how willingly he leaned forward and licked the blood from Kaiba's hand, remembered just how much he liked the taste. He shook his head hard, jostling around his memories until the one that fell into his recognition was the first time, the only other time he had tasted Kaiba's blood. That was different; he was starving and needed blood to heal himself. But this... Jou knew he hadn't needed it at all, he took it anyway, just because he could. The taste was still clinging to his tongue, and the worst part was he wanted more.

He remembered how helpless he had felt, drawn to that sweet red drink, almost willing to lick it off the floor where it fell in little red drops. Jou knew he very well might have, if Kaiba had not been holding his bleeding hand right before him. There was so much wrong with how badly he wanted it again Jou could hardly pick one reason from another.

He shouldn't want something Kaiba had to offer so badly, he shouldn't feel so drawn to it, so helpless when if was offered. He shouldn't feel so willing to do just anything to get more. It occurred to Jou in one horrible moment that he felt too much like a pet craving a treat, and he narrowed his eyes at the opposite wall, feeling his ears fold flat against his head. A soft growl rumbled from his throat, his arms winding tightly around his bare chest.

And the worst part was he couldn't deny that he was doing tricks for a little taste of Kaiba's blood; coming up with smarter strategies before he could stop himself, just to earn one more sweet lick.

The door slid open and Jou looked up, unable to stop the vivid flash of hope he felt, the wish to see those algid blue eyes looking back at him. He didn't know why but he somehow thought he'd feel better if could lose a game and be an experiment rather then a pet. Or maybe even win and turn Kaiba's blood away (although he seriously doubted he could do that).

In the doorway stood the tiny nervous servant girl who always gave Jou his blood packs. He looked up, ears perking up in question as he saw her, due to the face he had already been fed a while ago. Her eyes were wide, panic etched into her face.

"Help," she said, her voice a terror stained squeak. Jou hardly had time to stand before monstrous hands reached around either side of the servant girl's head and snapped her neck. Jou froze, starring in horror and shock as she fell to the floor, her eyes dull and lifeless. Behind her was a horrible creature, its skin a silvery death-grey, its fangs protruding from its thin black lips. Jou blinked several times, his mouth falling open when he realized just what he was looking at.

The other Nosferatu's eyes widened, like swelling pools of dirty brown water.

"I found him! Mistress, come this way!" he shouted, his voice rough and gravelly. Jou didn't know what to do; he kept looking between the dead girl on the floor, and the horrible creature before him. His stomach twisted painfully, stubborn denial racing back into his mind. He wasn't one of them… right?

But denying he was one of them meant knowing they were there, and he could hear more of them, their claws scrapping across the immaculate floors of the mansion. It gave him such a rush or belonging, of hope, that he instantly hated himself.

Through the doorway came a slim, tall Nosferatu female. There were shimmering violet scarves wrapped around random spots on her arms and legs, covering anywhere that may have been gashed and left open to fester. She smelled strongly of makeup, and her skin was almost more silver then grey. Tight black leather wrapped her chest, showing the shimmering silver skin of the top of her breasts, while a short strip of leather wrapped snugly around her hips, moving in tight loops down her thighs, sporting a silver buckle over her left hip. A thick silver ring hung from the center of her leather tube top, and she toyed with it with her long, violet painted claws. Gossamer thin white-blonde hair fell loosely don from her head, sheer enough that you could clearly see her scalp, her pierced pointed ears. Even her teeth had been filed down slightly, making the awkward shape of her jaw far less noticeable.

"Poor creature…" Jou's ears twitched as he heard her speak, recognition glowing over his eyes as he heard her voice, his gaze sinking into the deep violet of her eyes.

"M-Mai?" He stuttered, his jaw falling open. His mind seemed to be frozen, stunned into a sudden stop. It was then he heard a great deal of cursing and crashing, glass shattering and fabric ripping. Jou's ears tilted to the sounds past the door, and moments later he saw two Nosferatu dragging Kaiba into the doorway. Jou opened his mouth, panic writhing in his stomach as he saw the bruise forming on Kaiba's head, the glass shimmering on his torn coat.

"Jounouchi!" Mai shouted, leaping forward and wrapping her arms fiercely around Jou. "Oh Jou," she held him back by the shoulders, looking him up and down, "you look awful!"

"Duh," Jou couldn't help but say, his ears folding under her piercing eyes. Mai whacked his shoulder playfully, although Jou found it hurt a lot more then it should have.

"Not what I meant, you look underfed… and you clothes are all shredded…" She glared over at Kaiba, who seemed barely awake. "Don't worry Jou; we came to get you out of this place…"

"W-what?" Jou's head spun, "B-but,"

"Oh before we go, Princess," One of the vampires at Seto's side looked up, her ears perking in attention, "Kill Kaiba, we can't have anyone knowing we were here…"

"No!" Jou shouted, looking at Mai with panicked eyes. Then, feeling the sharp question of her gaze, he stuttered for an excuse. He got the feeling that if he wasn't careful, they could both end up dead. "I-I mean… I don't want him dead cuz… uh… it's to quick-"

"He's right!" Shouted another voice from the crowd of Nosferatu gathered at the doorway, "That poor kid has probably been through a lot of horrible experiments! Let's take Kaiba down to our city and show him what its like!"

"Oh what a great idea," Mai said with a soft, dark smile, "I'm sure Jounouchi would appreciate the revenge."

"What?!" Jou looked in panic over to Kaiba, who seemed to be fighting to keep awake. His eyes looked foggy and blind, but seemed to be searching, flickers of hot anger whispering across them.

"J-Jounouchi…?" The word left his lips on a weak breath, stained with anger. Jou felt a dark sadness tug at him, threaten to pull him under. Why was all of this happening?!

"Come on now Jou, I'm going to take you to my city…" Mai said gently, taking Jou's hand in hers.

"H-huh?" Jou was far to stunned to think straight, and for some reason he could feel tears swelling in the corners of his eyes.

"You poor thing… no one ever told you anything did they…?" Mai said, looking at Jou with sorrow in her eyes, like Jou was some little child everyone had forgotten. Jou tried not to narrow his eyes, holding his ears still, hating the feeling she gave him, even if it was true.

"No, no one told me nothin'," Jou's eyes flickered over to Kaiba, who was looking right back at him. Jou's stomach twisted in pain, his eyes widening when he saw the hate etched onto Kaiba's face, and had to look away. "Tell me," he said shortly, looking at Mai to avoid looking anywhere else.

"We have our own city Jou, underground where all the Nosferatu through the ages have lived. We keep it a secret… so none of the other vampires come to bother us. It's peaceful down there Jou, and we have everything: water, cable, lights, internet, power, and even an infinite source of food!" Jou listened, intent on watching her face, not letting his eyes wonder back to Kaiba. While avoiding that hateful look, he noted that her face was covered with silver paint, peeling slightly around her ears, and underneath her skin was dirty grey just like his. This thought comforted him slightly, tugging at his defenses.

"….h-how do you got all that?" he asked almost shyly. Her grip on his shoulders tightened very slightly, a pleased smile sliding over her violet painted lips, showing her fangs.

"Nosferatu are very skilled when we work together sweetheart, there's not much we can't do…" She said, somehow managing a sultry smile. "No come on… I'll show you the way," Without waiting for a response, she took Jou's wrist, leading him through the dark mansion halls. Jou looked back over his shoulder, watching Kaiba as the two other vampires carried him. His feet were dragging along the floor, and he seemed to be passed out, a trickle of blood slithering from under his hair. Jou's chest hurt, a sudden sharp pain stabbing him between his ribs. He made up is mind right there to help Kaiba as soon as he could.

Jounouchi could hardly believe what he was seeing. Tunnels and corridors carved from stone glistened softly in the neon light, which was flickering gently from stolen street lights and signs. Doors were propped against large expanses of stone, which were hallowed out onto large stony rooms. Jou could see inside one now at then, some had Christmas lights strung on the walls, some had bright eerie blue computer screens flooding there tiny caves with light, and some had little Nosferatu children perched laughing before a grainy television.

The streets were carved out widely, and Nosferatu would walk under the dim light chatting pleasantly, sometimes on would whip by on an old rusted bike, or sometimes a couple would even walk by hand in hand, whispering softly to each other. Jou was stunned silent, forgetting everything but this strange, fantastic little world.

"How long has this been here? Who made it…?" Jou said breathlessly, looking around at the high stone ceilings and softly glimmering lights. It looked like the stone walls were covered in fireflies because of all the soft white Christmas lights.

"Oh it's been here forever…" Mai explained with a little smile, "But it wasn't quite so pleasant until I fixed it up… convinced people to wire in our power and what not… Now it's a wonderful place, don't you think…?" Jou nodded, eyes still wondering about, inspecting each beautiful little light.

"H-how come I didn't know about this place…?" He questioned, wondering how an entire world could escape his knowledge.

"I told you already sweetheart, we keep it a secret. None of us want those other vampires coming down here and belittling us."

"Oh…" Jou looked behind himself briefly, checking to see if those two Nosferatu were still carrying Kaiba behind them. His eyes widened in slight panic when he realized they weren't there.

"Uh M-Mai where's Kaiba?" he stuttered, his urge to explore around this new world withering away instantly.

She seemed a little confused by the urgency to his voice, raising an eyebrow and looking at him carefully before she answered.

"There's a cage somewhere with his name on it," She said with a dark smile, showing her unnaturally white teeth.

"What? They're taking him there now?" Jou did his best to mask his worry in a casual, inquisitive tone.

"Of course, the plan was to put him through a few nasty little 'experiments', and I'm sure most of us have something we'd like to inflict on him… It's a crime to keep one Nos from another Jou," she looked as him with a silky expression, "All of us are offended for you…"

'Which is stupid because I'm not offended…' Jou thought to himself. He could feel sheer panic running through his veins, unable to stop himself from picturing Kaiba in a cage, surrounded by monsters holding rusted blades or dirty needles. He shook his hard, swallowing the dryness in his throat.

"Uhm, Mai…"Jou looked around, hardly noticing where they had gone while he was musing. Mai was pushing open her splintering wooden door, beckoning Jou to fallow her inside. The walls were decorated with a few slightly dirty paintings, and many strings of white and red Christmas lights. A cracked glass vanity table was nestled against the back wall of the room, littered with many containers of make up, and little brushes. Beside that was an open chest that seemed to be full of leathers, the smell tickling strongly at Jou's nose. Other then that, there was a heart shaped bed with dark red covers in the corner, and just beside that a softly glowing computer screen resting upon a scarred wooden table.

"What?" She questioned, sitting on the little chair before her vanity table, pulling open a container of thick silver paint and looking at her reflection in a displeased manner. She began to touch up the peeling color around her ears, her reflection watching Jou expectantly.

"I uh… I don't want no other Nos to touch Kaiba," he began, "cuz uh… it's not fair. I mean he only did bad stuff to me so… why should they get to have all the fun?" As Jou spoke he realized just why he was being so careful not to offend her or any of the other Nosferatu. What would happen after he helped Kaiba? Jou was sure the brunette would be incredibly angry with him, and with a sharp pang of sadness he realized Kaiba probably wouldn't want Jou to come back with him. So where would he go…? If he was careful enough about what he said… he could probably come back and stay with Mai. He felt a little sick at the thought of coming back to the creatures that caused him so much trouble, that hurt Kaiba so much, but…

Jounouchi decided he didn't have any other choice. What else could he do? Kaiba wasn't going to let him come back, and he certainly wasn't going to try living alone above ground again…

"I see your point…" Mai said with a faintly dark smile. "Okay then… what do you want to do with him?"

"Bite him," was the first thing that came to mind, "I wanna bite him… make him real scared…"

"Okay then, how could I say no?" Mai seemed satisfied with her makeup now, all her visible skin a smooth glimmering silver. "But first… let's sit you down and make you look nice… I won't send you back to Kaiba as the skinny dirty thing he made you."

"Will it take long?" Jou questioned, unable to keep all the nervousness from creeping into his voice. "I mean uh, I don't want him to get to hurt before I get there, more fun for me ya know…"

"Oh don't worry, a little burnt hair never hurt anyone," Mai said with a silvery laugh. Jou opened his mouth to speak, his stomach giving an anxious jolt, but Mai had grabbed his shoulders and steered him over to the vanity table, sitting him down firmly.

"I can tell you want to get to the little bastard but just wait, alright sweetheart? This shouldn't take to long…"

Jou got the idea he wasn't going anywhere until she was satisfied with him, so with a deep sigh he nodded, sitting still while she opened her collection of paints of crèmes.

"Wait until Kaiba sees you when you're finished, he's not even going to see the same creature…"

Jou's ears folded down.

"Yeah I know…"

~*~*~*~

Thank you guys for all the lovely reviews ^^ I'm so happy you're enjoying this fic! I hope you liked the update, Oooo things are getting tense!! After this, just two more chapters to go!! OMG!!


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